very nervously. What if everything she’d been told that morning was bullshit? Hell, did he even know her name?
After several fruitless minutes going through this again and again, she decided there was only one way to find out.
“Yo!” The voice was laid back, informal—and very familiar.
“Cam? Can you talk?”
“Dianne!” (Well, that was one question answered at least.) “Sure, sure. What’s up?”
“Oh, nothing much... I was just wondering... this morning, you said about coming on tour with you, hitching along for the ride and all that.”
“Yeah, I remember,” his voice was cautious all of a sudden.
“Well, I’d like to know if the offer still stands.”
There was an explosion of noise on the other end of the line and Dianne wondered what it was until she realised he had literally let out his breath in a whoop. “You’re kidding me, right?” he said. “Of course! It’ll be great!”
“Okay, okay,” she said as he began to rush into a huge conversation. There was a strange feeling in her stomach and she couldn’t work out if it was dread or excitement.
“You won’t regret this—I’m telling you. It’ll be great.” All Cam’s attempts to remain cool had fallen apart so that he sounded more like a kid let loose in a proverbial candy store.
“I hope you’re right about that,” she answered somewhat grimly. “So, where will we meet? Back at the hotel?”
“Nah, we’ve left there. We had to pick up some more stuff for the trip—we’ll be driving down to Dover tomorrow and catching the ferry across to Calais. With any luck, the night after that we’ll be playing in Paris.”
Despite her reservations, excitement was beginning to gain the upper hand over dread and some of Cam’s enthusiasm was rubbing off on her. “That is great. Okay, where shall we meet?”
Cam gave her an address in north London, not so very far from where she was staying. “Can you make it this afternoon?” he asked.
“I’ve just got a couple of things to do first,” she said. “But I’ll be there in the morning, I promise.”
As she hung up, it was only then that Dianne realised she was actually telling the truth: she would be there. Until that moment the decision had hung in the balance, but as she looked around her tiny flat, she understood that she had weighed up what life had given her so far and found it wanting.
“Here goes for nothing,” she told herself. As she dialled one final number, this for work, her nerves spiked suddenly. Was she doing the right thing? This was her last chance. Part of her brain shrieked as the phone rang out, shouting at her to stop before it was too late. Instead she held on as a familiar and much-detested voice answered on the other end.
“Alice,” she said, trying to keep herself as calm as possible, “there’s something I need to tell you...”
Part II: Paris
Chapter Six
Joining Cam and his band mates had not quite been what Dianne was expecting. As she caught the tube south of the river early that morning, a large bag slung over her shoulder with what she hoped would be enough clothes for the duration, she had visions of a plush liner coach to carry the members of Black Ark onwards to their every whim.
What she found was a mini bus being packed with amps, instruments and other equipment by the band members themselves.
“What the fuck is she doing here?” She recognised the bass player from two nights previously, a thick mop of dark brown hair almost covering his eyes so that it was hard to tell where his eyebrows ended and his hairline started. He would have been handsome in his own way, but for the contemptuous way he held his mouth as he stared at her.
“I told you, Dan, she’s coming with us.” Cam shook his head in annoyance and then dropped the stack he had been manhandling into the back of the van so that he could come across to Dianne and kiss her.
“Well it’s going to make it a fucking tight fit, that’s all that I can
After several fruitless minutes going through this again and again, she decided there was only one way to find out.
“Yo!” The voice was laid back, informal—and very familiar.
“Cam? Can you talk?”
“Dianne!” (Well, that was one question answered at least.) “Sure, sure. What’s up?”
“Oh, nothing much... I was just wondering... this morning, you said about coming on tour with you, hitching along for the ride and all that.”
“Yeah, I remember,” his voice was cautious all of a sudden.
“Well, I’d like to know if the offer still stands.”
There was an explosion of noise on the other end of the line and Dianne wondered what it was until she realised he had literally let out his breath in a whoop. “You’re kidding me, right?” he said. “Of course! It’ll be great!”
“Okay, okay,” she said as he began to rush into a huge conversation. There was a strange feeling in her stomach and she couldn’t work out if it was dread or excitement.
“You won’t regret this—I’m telling you. It’ll be great.” All Cam’s attempts to remain cool had fallen apart so that he sounded more like a kid let loose in a proverbial candy store.
“I hope you’re right about that,” she answered somewhat grimly. “So, where will we meet? Back at the hotel?”
“Nah, we’ve left there. We had to pick up some more stuff for the trip—we’ll be driving down to Dover tomorrow and catching the ferry across to Calais. With any luck, the night after that we’ll be playing in Paris.”
Despite her reservations, excitement was beginning to gain the upper hand over dread and some of Cam’s enthusiasm was rubbing off on her. “That is great. Okay, where shall we meet?”
Cam gave her an address in north London, not so very far from where she was staying. “Can you make it this afternoon?” he asked.
“I’ve just got a couple of things to do first,” she said. “But I’ll be there in the morning, I promise.”
As she hung up, it was only then that Dianne realised she was actually telling the truth: she would be there. Until that moment the decision had hung in the balance, but as she looked around her tiny flat, she understood that she had weighed up what life had given her so far and found it wanting.
“Here goes for nothing,” she told herself. As she dialled one final number, this for work, her nerves spiked suddenly. Was she doing the right thing? This was her last chance. Part of her brain shrieked as the phone rang out, shouting at her to stop before it was too late. Instead she held on as a familiar and much-detested voice answered on the other end.
“Alice,” she said, trying to keep herself as calm as possible, “there’s something I need to tell you...”
Part II: Paris
Chapter Six
Joining Cam and his band mates had not quite been what Dianne was expecting. As she caught the tube south of the river early that morning, a large bag slung over her shoulder with what she hoped would be enough clothes for the duration, she had visions of a plush liner coach to carry the members of Black Ark onwards to their every whim.
What she found was a mini bus being packed with amps, instruments and other equipment by the band members themselves.
“What the fuck is she doing here?” She recognised the bass player from two nights previously, a thick mop of dark brown hair almost covering his eyes so that it was hard to tell where his eyebrows ended and his hairline started. He would have been handsome in his own way, but for the contemptuous way he held his mouth as he stared at her.
“I told you, Dan, she’s coming with us.” Cam shook his head in annoyance and then dropped the stack he had been manhandling into the back of the van so that he could come across to Dianne and kiss her.
“Well it’s going to make it a fucking tight fit, that’s all that I can
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